State-building, expansion and conflict

Civilization: Mesopotamia

Name: Alyssa Caputo


Themes
How does this theme apply to your civilization?
Political Structures and forms of governance
  • Ruled first by goverment assemblies, eventually had kings.
  • Kings were often helped by military ranked nobles.
  • Women were normally ranked below men in the work force, but they were able to find power within being a priestess.
Empires
  • Sargon of Akkad began taking over Sumarian city-states to create hi own empire. Though it fell, he paved the path for many conquerers that came after him.
  • Hammuabi, unlike Sargon of Akkad , was able to maintain an empire with a code that he said was "To promote the welfare of the people to cause justice to prevail in the land, to destroy the wicked and evil, so that the strong might not opress the weak, to rise like the sun over the people and to lighten up the land".
Nations and nationalism
  • Had city-states that constantly attempted to conquer each other including Akkad and Sumer.
  • Sumerian cities were the first in the world, and dominated political affairs in Mesopotamia.
  • Akkad was made very wealthy by it's first leader, Sargon.
  • The Akkads often overshadowed the Sumarians.
Revolts and revolutions
N/A
Regional, transregional, and global structures and organizations
  • Mesopotamia was in between two rivers, the Tigris and the Euphraties.
  • Had very important land.
  • Had many temples, palaces, and strong armies to protect them from any invading forces.